First Minister to Chair Scottish Energy Advisory Board
Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond announced today that the new Scottish Energy Advisory Board that he is to chair will play a vital role in shaping the future of Scotland’s energy sector. Speaking at the Offshore Europe Conference in Aberdeen, the First Minister said that optimism is returning to the oil and gas industry thanks to the recovering oil price and capital markets returning to normal. He also outlined his aim for Scotland and Aberdeen to take full advantage of our natural resources and build on our status as an oil and gas hub to become a global energy hub – encompassing renewable energy technologies, including offshore wind, tidal and marine. An oil and gas advisory committee made up of key industry players and public agency support staff will also be established as part of this approach.
First Minister Alex Salmond said: “Over the last generation Scotland – and particularly Aberdeen – has been a global hub for the oil and gas industry, and the industry has at least another forty years to look forward to. Optimism is returning to the oil and gas industry thanks to the recovering oil price and capital markets returning to something approaching normality. And there is still a great deal of potential to be explored and developed. My aim is to ensure that Scotland and Aberdeen will build on the skills and technology developed in the offshore sector to become a hub for the renewables industry, and a global energy leader – encompassing renewable energy technologies, including offshore wind, tidal and wave. This is one of the tasks of the new Scottish Energy Advisory Board.
Scotland is already on the way to becoming a global renewables hub. I recently performed the opening of the Scottish European Green Energy Centre here in Aberdeen. The Centre is designed to ensure that Scotland is not just at cutting edge of academic and technical expertise, but of the practical deployment of new technologies.
With Scotland’s natural resources and the world class skills of our people, I am confident we can build on our success as an oil and gas centre to become a global energy leader across the range of industries and technologies.”